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Monday, 23 September 2013

Payday Treat: Champagne Billecart-Salmon's NV Rosé

It's time for some Autumn Survival Techniques. Otherwise I'm hibernating.

It's too cold, I haven't got enough cosy knits yet, and I'm having to start leaving earlier in the mornings to factor in stupid things like 'my car is frozen into a solid block of ice' or 'it was raining so hard I got lost on the way to work'.

At the end of the day, I get home, put a one-pot recipe in the oven, and run myself a nice long bath. With fragrant bubbles, a soothing face mask, and a great big candle. But that's not enough. To ease me into winter, I need a real treat. Something truly decadent. A post-payday, 'I deserve this' moment of luxury.

So I've decided once a month I'm going to buy some brilliantly special bubbly to sip in the bath.

This month, the lovely people at Champagne Billecart-Salmon sent me a bottle of their signature wine, the Billecart-Salmon Brut Rosé NV. At £62.99 from Corks Out, it's not cheap, but if you want a payday treat it's the absolute height of luxury. I've never looked forward to a bath more.

Even the colour of this wine oozes romance and decadence. It's pale pink tones have plenty of glints and sparkles, and the bubbles are just begging to be sipped.

It smells divine too, packed full of red fruits and citrus, with a gentle hint of creamy vanilla. The taste certainly lives up to the aromas, and the texture of this Champagne is so smooth and silky its heavenly. Light, elegant, and delicately fruity, it's dangerously easy to sip.

Very much the sort of bottle you would want to take into the bathroom with you for frequent top-ups, I managed to resist and shared the remainder with my very lucky household. Personally, I wouldn't muddy this wine with food as it's really perfect on its own, but I imagine it would work well with salmon, scallops, or a light chicken or turkey dish.